00:00In the United States, the collateral effects of mass rates are being reflected in key sectors
00:05of the national economy, where a shortage of workers has pushed both small and large
00:10companies to the brink of bankruptcy.
00:12Reporting from New York, our correspondent Henry Gamelo has the details.
00:19The constant and increasingly violent clashes between ICE agents and immigrant advocates,
00:25along with mass rates targeting undocumented immigrants, have created a climate of uncertainty
00:32and fear among workers who now prefer to stay home rather than risk deportation.
00:39The result?
00:40An unprecedented labor crisis that has brought vital sectors of the U.S. economy, such as
00:46agriculture, construction and services, to the verge of collapse.
00:51What we see in our community is the reduction of projects worked by our community.
01:01They are deciding not to work in big projects.
01:05They are deciding not to work that much like they used to.
01:12And the crisis, you know, at all levels, they have been affected.
01:17They have been affected from the micro companies to the big companies, general contractors, where
01:24they have been forced to postpone deadlines and find other ways to work with the contractors.
01:35According to the National Association of Hispanic Contractors, in the United States, nearly 80% of
01:42commercial projects have been postponed or delayed due to labor shortages.
01:48Although the Trump administration strives to highlight figures showing economic growth, the reality for the
01:56average citizen is that jobs insecurity and the fear of deportation are not merely a matter of perception, but a
02:06tangible reality.
02:07As a matter of fact, I have an issue with my building where I live.
02:10They're waiting for landscaping.
02:13They're trying about a month trying to find somebody.
02:17And it's impossible because the workers are not afraid to work.
02:23People are afraid to work because they don't know what's going to happen.
02:27Sometimes they catch them, but they don't check it before they take you.
02:33According to the New York-based day labor organization NICE, 54% of construction workers in the United
02:41States are undocumented.
02:43And because they are quitting their jobs, many business owners have found themselves forced
02:49to sell their companies or declare bankruptcy.
02:52Some companies, they just give up.
02:55You know, they stop bidding projects.
02:57They stop accepting new projects.
03:01And other aspect is other companies.
03:03They've been, you know, just letting go, you know, the small contractors and, you know, for good.
03:11Since February, ICE along with the federal agencies collaborating with them has not stopped conducting
03:18raids at construction sites, where they have detained groups ranging from as few as three
03:24workers to as many as 100 at a time.
03:28Consequently, for many immigrants in the United States, going to work has become a game of
03:34chance, where you know when you leave home, but not when you return.
03:39Pablo Danny Joe and Henry Camelo, TELESUR, New York.
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